Alaska Pipeline Going Back Online
By ALLEN BAKER 11/06/2002 14:03:09 EST
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) - Workers began the slow process Wednesday morning of
restarting the trans-Alaska oil pipeline, which was shut down after a strong earthquake
over the weekend, officials said.
It was expected to take several hours to bring the huge oil pipeline back to normal
flow. The work was being done slowly so that any problems could be spotted quickly.
Tanker loading at Valdez could resume as early as Thursday, according to Mike
Heatwole of Alyeska Pipeline Service Co.
The 800-mile, 48-inch diameter line, which carries about a sixth of the nation's oil
production, was shut down Sunday in the wake of a magnitude 7.9 earthquake. It
damaged pipeline supports and moved sections of the line up to seven feet, but did not
cause any leaks.
Officials wanted to make sure temporary supports placed under the line at some
points were adequate to deal with any new quakes, said Marnie Isaacs of Alyeska.
Aftershocks were continuing in the region, according to the Alaska Earthquake
Information Center in Fairbanks, which reported magnitude 4.0 and magnitude 3.9
quakes Wednesday morning.
More than a dozen contractors had worked around the clock to get the pipeline back in
operation, with nearly 300 people on the job Tuesday, according to Heatwole.
The affected area is about 150 miles south of Fairbanks in an area that was known to
be earthquake-prone when the line was built. Special measures were taken along that
section of the line, which is above ground, to allow for movement in the event of a
quake.
Gov. Tony Knowles said the pipeline "did exactly what it's supposed to do in an
earthquake. It bent but it did not break."
The pipeline normally carries about a million barrels of oil to Valdez each day.
While only one person was injured in Sunday's quake, it caused major damage to
roads, and officials estimated those alone would cost around $20 million to repair. |
